I really like to have images of artists and contributors in Roon. When an image is missing, I will make attempts to add it using Valence. Usually the process is pretty straightforward.
I think I found an alternate path. First, I tap on the three dots, select edit and then tap “add image”. When I do that, the Valence bullet is deselected and the bullet moves to the right where Edit is located:
This too is pretty straightforward, but I am uncertain if that image is add to Valence or just to my local library.
Is there a way I can add images to Valence if an artist or contributor is missing the link?
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@Suedkiez advised that the image is added to my local library and provided a few workarounds. What I’d really like to do is: 1) have this integrated into Valence and 2) contribute artwork so it can be used by others (all described in my earlier post).
So my question here is why would the link be missing in Valence for some artists and contributors, but not others, and can that be corrected? If not, I can do the workaround, but that is less ideal.
Thanks for reaching out and for your willingness to contribute to Valence!
I’d be happy to explain the logic behind this behavior. The presence of the “add a photo” link on an artist’s page depends entirely on whether that specific artist is mirrored in Roon’s cloud database.
Here is why the link might be missing:
Local Files: If an artist is generated solely from the ARTIST tag in your local tracks and Roon hasn't matched them to an entity in our own database, the Valence link will not appear.
Streaming Services (e.g., TIDAL): Similarly, if an artist exists on TIDAL but is relatively unknown or very new, their record might not have synced with Roon's database yet. If they aren't in Roon's database, the option to contribute to Valence won't be available.
Regarding your other observation, you are completely right. When you manually edit an artist via the 3-dots menu and select "Add Image," you are adding that photo exclusively to your local library. It gets saved in your local database and does not sync with Valence.
I hope this clears up the inconsistency you were seeing! Please let us know if you have any other questions.
When Valence was first introduced some years ago, it was possible to upload photos to Valence. However, it soon became apparent to Roon Labs that Copyright and other knotty issues raised their heads. So Roon Labs apparently decided to bring the addition of photos into Valence totally within their control - and I can’t say I blame them.
As @alex_h says, you can add any photos you want to your local database…
Thanks @alex_h and @Geoff_Coupe for your thoughtful replies. A few comments (of which I have little authority to speak knowledgeably).
I’m not certain what triggers an artist to appear in the Roon database. However, if an unlisted artist later appears in the Roon database, the potential contribution is then lost for others to access, thus making the Roon database less richer than it could be.
I certainly understand the concerns about copyright violations. If they are of concern for Roon Labs, then I’m surprised that Valence contributions are permitted as anything that is posted could be a potential violation.
I’ll continue to add “unlinked” artists to my local library.
Thank you for the detailed report and for your interest in contributing to the Valence community!
If Roon can clearly link the artist in your library to a known entity in our database, it provides the Valence link so your contribution can benefit everyone. However, if an artist is “Unidentified” (meaning Roon sees the name but can’t find a definitive match in the cloud), the Valence link will be missing. In those cases, Roon only allows a local edit, which is why the bullet point moves to “Edit” and the image remains only in your personal library.
f the artist is Identified, Roon links directly to Valence, allowing your contribution to be shared with the entire community.
However, if the artist is Unidentified, Roon shifts to a Local Edit mode. You can still add a photo, but it stays only on your Core. To ‘unlock’ the Valence contribution for those artists, you first need to ‘Identify Artist’ in the Edit menu to match them with our global database
Once the artist is successfully identified, the Valence “Add a photo” link should appear on their profile, allowing you to contribute artwork to the global community.
As an example, here is the same artist with the Valence + icon right below it.
Hey @vadim , I was ready to move on and add images of unidentified artists to my local library. Now I’m intrigued.
I tried to follow your steps. However, I wasn’t able to find ‘Identify Artist’ in the Edit menu. Can you tell me exactly where it is, perhaps with a screenshot?
In your example, you identified Anja-Regine Graewel as illustrated in your screenshot. If that was done, wouldn’t I then be able to see the “Add a photo” link on my end? I don’t see it:
Would you kindly clarify whether you manually created this Artist by adding it to one of the albums/compositions, or if you found it using the search functionality?
My usual practice after ripping a CD/LP or downloading digital media is to add it to my library and then use Yate (my tag editor) that pings Discogs and MusicBrainz.
Other times, the credits are captured during the ripping process.
So, I think the answer to your question then is the credits are found it using the search functionality since if I did this manually, I’d be searching those sources.
It is my understanding that you were advising on how to add an artist (and maybe just primary artists) in Roon where it may not have been done in a tag editor. Please clarify if I am mistaken.
So rolling back to the contributing artist Anja-Regine Graewel, it appears that I am unable to add her image in Valence as this artist is “Unidentified” in Roon. I can add the image locally. If this artist later appears in the Roon database, my local image will not be added unless it was added from the ingesting source. That seems to be a lost opportunity, but I understand.
I’m ready to close this out unless there are any misunderstandings on my part.
